Sometimes I think we get so afraid of failing, we don't try anything new. At least, I do that.
My husband is a lot better at striking out and taking risks, declaring that failure is only actually failure if you let it be the end. If you keep going, if you learn from it and keep trying, it's just an educational experience. He stressed so much not to be afraid of failure, he has helped me in so many ways to try new things and strike out even when I'm afraid.
Writing is one of those things. Not writing in general, in terms of, I always scribbled notes or story ideas in class, worked hard at writing out poems I shared with a few close friends I trusted to be vulnerable with. Sometimes sharing your writing can feel like you are baring part of your soul.
But my husband encouraged me to take it further and share it with the world. He helped me understand if I wrote books I wanted to read, someone else was out there, too, wanting to read the book I wanted to read as well, I just needed to write it for them! So I started trying to do that with my Horse Haven series.
I thought from the start everything had to be perfect. I read blogs and articles and tried to find information on how to create a reader's market. How to make a blog go, how to get a book to sell. Yet I've realized something, something people don't really seem to talk about - You don't have to have all the answers from point A. You are allowed to start somewhere and end up somewhere else. You are allowed to find your style, to find your feet, to change some things. Heck, if you really decide you want to turn things around and scrap where you started, you can even create a new pen name!
And guess what? That's okay, that doesn't mean you failed, and it doesn't mean it was all a waste. Not if you learned. Learning is never a waste.
~ G.G. Marshall
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